The present invention is directed to a method for controlling and/or alleviating respiratory disease or allergies.
Respiratory diseases are many in number. For instance, bronchoconstriction associated with pulmonary disease is very prevalant and associated with a number of diseases. These diseases include asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and pulmonary hypersensitivity.
Asthma is a term given to a condition whereby a person experiences wheezing and difficulty in breathing due to the constriction of the air passages in the lungs. It has been believed that this state is due to an allergic reaction of some sort and generally non-defined. It is estimated, for example, that 5 million children in the United States alone suffer from the symptoms of asthma. It has also been reported that 500,000 hospital admissions and 5000 deaths each year may be attributable to asthma. COPD affects more than 15 million persons in the United States. COPD symptoms include chronic cough, shortness of breath and difficulty breathing, and predominates in two forms, chronic bronchitis and emphysema.
Additional respiratory diseases such as allergic rhinitis, conjunctivitis, Epiglottis, Laringotrachitis, Urticaria and other allergic and neurodermatitis are often associated with these conditions.
A variety of treatments have been tried to alleviate or control such symptoms. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 3,950,519 described a process for treatment of allergenically induced asthma by administration of cedar resin which functions as a antiasthmatic agent exhibiting expectorant action to aid in cleansing the lungs of excess mucus. Present asthma treatments involve minimizing contact with allerginic agents as well as use of bronchodilators. However, it is possible that in certain instances the use of a bronchodilator exacerbates the condition rather than provide any long term relief from the symptons due to the gaseous delivery system employed. It has also been proposed to administer methylecgonidine to counteract acetylcholine-induced contraction on tracheal rings as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,552,407. Bronchoconstriction therapy has also included administration of beta-adrenergic agonists, ipratropium and methylxanthines. Treatment of COPD includes administration of ipratropium (Atrovent), albuterol (Proventil, Ventolin) and theophylline. In extreme cases, lung resection and transplantation are recommended.
Exemplary therapies are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,794,292 (atropine); 4,031,218 (xanthines); 4,089,959 (xanthines); 4,120,947 (xanthines); 4,353,922 (anticholinergic bronchodilators); 4,689,213 (calcium channel blocker); 5,096,916 and 5,250,286 (imidazoline); 5,124,455 (oxime-carbonate and oxime-carbamate); 5,171,744 and 5,292,749 (antimuscarinic bronchodilator); 5,362,755 and 5,547,994 (albuterol); and 5,409,934 (xanthines).
As a complicating factor in the treatment of respiratory disease and allergies, it is believed that factors such as comorbid addictions, stress, psychiatric disorders and environmental factors play a role in determining the extent to which a particular person may be afflicted by the symptoms of respiratory disease and allergies. For example, xenobiotic agents such as pesticides, insecticides, fungicides, oxidants, solvents and other environmental toxins encountered by the person by various means (e.g., drinking water, food contaminantion, smoking, etc.) may contribute to the susceptibility of the person to respiratory disease and allergies as well as the severity of symptoms of such diseases.
A need thus exists to provide a method of treatment of respiratory disease and allergies suffered by mammals and in particular humans which enables the root cause of the respiratory disease and/or allergy to be addressed whereby further occurrences of the disease or allergy are avoided or at the least minimized. It may accordingly be possible, for example, to avoid the need for surgery which may otherwise be required in an attempt to restore acceptable lung function in cases such as extreme COPD.